Russian govt refuses soft loan for Samolet but might offer indirect aid - paper

MOSCOW. Feb 19 (Interfax) - The Russian government is not willing to support Samolet Group with direct subsidies and is refusing to provide the soft loan that the struggling real estate developer requested, newspaper Kommersant reported on Thursday, citing sources.

The paper reported a banking source as saying that Samolet's financial condition is not critical and it can manage most of its credit obligations, so there is no need for direct state support. Samolet said it does not currently have any information about the government's decision.

Kommersant said the Finance Ministry plans to hold a working group meeting on February 20 at which it is expected to approve indirect support measures for the developer. This could include assistance in recovering the Kvartal Maryino residential complex that was seized from the group. This complex, along with other assets linked to Latvia's Rietumu Banka, was earlier transferred to Russia's Federal Property Agency by court order.

At the beginning of February it emerged that Samolet had asked the government to provide support in the form of a subsidized loan or other stabilization instrument in the amount of 50 billion rubles, with company shareholders offering to put up a blocking or greater stake in the company in return with a repurchase option.

Balances on Samolet's accounts totalled 7 billion-8 billion rubles at the end of January, about the same as at the end of 2025, while project debt stood at 650 billion rubles and balances on escrow accounts amounted to 400 billion rubles.